This is a really good way of illustrating this point, Cal. Harsh, but fair. It comes back to what you build your self-esteem around. If you build it around being right or being accepted, you're f*cked, because somebody's inevitably going to think you're not that great and let you know.

However, if you build it around being a learner, you can keep your sanity while receiving (useful) feedback and getting so good you can't be ignored.